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Obama to Congress: It’s time for a deal

“The speaker told the president that if the Senate amends the House-passed legislation and sends back a plan, the House will consider it - either by accepting or amending,” a Boehner aide said. “The group agreed that the next step should be the Senate taking bipartisan action.”

Emerging from the meeting, Pelosi called the session “candid and constructive.”

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“We’re waiting to see what Leader Reid and Leader McConnell can find as far as a legislative path to go forward,” Pelosi told reporters in the Capitol. “I would say the president led in that direction of saying the Speaker says we need to hear from the Senate so let’s have the Senate put something together and see where that takes us.”

Asked if Boehner indicated a willingness to take up a Senate-passed bill, Pelosi said: “Well he’s not going to bring up anything unless something comes over from there. He made that very clear.”

Senior Republicans said Friday there was virtually no possibility that McConnell would back a deal that couldn’t pass the House, meaning it would need significant Republican support, something that has been elusive in any Democratic proposal put forward thus far.

Asked if the Senate GOP would cut a deal without Boehner’s blessing, Kyl said: “I think that’s pretty unlikely. If you know the House isn’t going to do something, then why go through the charade? Then it becomes political gamesmanship.”

North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr, the chief GOP deputy whip, said it would “take a monumental move” for a deal to be reached. He added that if Obama pitches a plan to set the tax threshold at $250,000, “I think we can just sorta laugh at it.”

Last Friday, Obama proposed what the White House considered a scaled-back plan from its earlier offers in order to get past the immediate crush of spending cuts and tax hikes poised to hit the economy.

But Republicans — most of whom are dead set against any tax increases — say a plan to set the threshold at $250,000 cannot pass the House, especially if Obama does not offer to cut deeper into Medicare and other entitlement programs than he has so far. Democrats said Friday that if the GOP ups its demands on spending cuts, a deal would be unlikely before the first of the year.

Readers' Comments (569)

Two take aways from this article: 1. bipartisan messaging has shifted to condition us to accept the fact the Nation is going over the fiscal cliff; and 2. there is apparent bipartisan agreement amongst the leadership of the Democratic and Republican parties that inaction is the preferred political course of action than finding a solution. Apparently at this point in time "kicking the can down the road" is better than trying to solve the problem. More of the same from our self-serving career politicians.

All of these clowns think they are fooling us. They ALL, both parties, want to raise taxes and these idiots think that we can't see through their deception. We are ruled by an elite class that thrives off the tax revenues of hard working Americans. When are we going to wake up and kick all these fat cats out of office and replace them with average American citizens who agree to term limits and the elimination of the fringe benefits that these elite clowns have voted for themselves.

Asked if the Senate GOP would cut a deal without Boehner’s blessing, Kyl said: “I think that’s pretty unlikely. If you know the House isn’t going to do something, then why go through the charade? Then it becomes political gamesmanship.”

I agree Senator Kyle, Plan B was political gamesmanship.

The Senate already passed what Obama is proposing, but Boehner won't bring it to the floor for a vote because he says it has "blue slip" problems, meaning that the House will not vote on tax legislation that originates in the Senate. Then plan B explodes and Boehner leaves town saying it is up to the Senate. How are these "blue slip" problems going to be dealt with on the new Senate bill. Answer, there are no blue slip problems, Boehner refuses to bring the bill to the floor because he knows it would pass.

This is what Americans get for electing Republican do nothings to control the House. In our greatest time of need, the Congress is dead locked and stale mated.

If a deal is not reached, first the stock market will crash. Then 4 Million Americans will lose the only income they have in unemployment benefits. This will further hurt the economy. Millions of Americans now with no income, will be homeless and without basic necessities like food and shelter.

Yet, the Republicans never think of these things. The only thing Boehner thinks of is saving his political skin and being re-elected Speaker. Boehner is in reality perhaps the WORST HOUSE SPEAKER in US History. He has accomplished absolutely NOTHING.

All of this will ensure that the USA Slides back into recession and possible Depression, unlike anything we have seen in the past. Interest rates are now so low that the Fed cannot lower them any further. The US Government will be powerless to act in the face of the next Recession which will certainly occur if no deal is reached.

The government has been propping up a PHONY ECONOMY since Reagan in the early 80's. Each time the economy has gone into recession, the US government has lowered interest rates and increased monetary supply. This produces the Boom and Bust economy that we have been living with for 30 years. They can no longer keep this up. Its time to pay the piper.

Congressperson Steve Israel would not back that deal as he already said $250,000 is too low a threshold for his Long Island constituents. And Israel is a leading liberal. Obama gets all the blame as he is not interested in reaching a deal with such a ridiculous offer. Lets go over the cliff republicans then next year we will have real leaverage as all kinds of taxes kick in on the middle class. Obama as Commander in Chief will get the blame.

"But NO.... Obama/Democrats DON'T EVEN HAVE A BUDGET.... HAVEN'T HAD A BUDGET FOR 4 YEARS NOW!

Obama: maybe your low-information voters go for all the drama.... but the rest of us just ask that you

do your job, get it done before we go off a fiscal cliff.... CUT SPENDING, OBAMA."

That's rich. You pretend you are not in the group of low information voters, but you don't seem to realize that spending has grown the slowest under Obama of all modern presidents precisely because he HAS cut spending. The 'drama' to which you refer, is taking place in the GOP caucus, which can't manage to agree amongst itself, much less with democrats.....who sit poised to vote for the $250k bill passed out of the senate. Boehner doesn't put that bill before the House, not really because of 'blue slip' problems....but because HE KNOWS IT WILL PASS AND BECOME LAW.

If you want to lecture anyone, take on your own guys.

Psssttt....by the way....the reason we've had no new budget lies in the same arena....getting Republicans off their radical right ways and into the middle so some REASONABLE (read: Not the Ryan budget) budget can be agreed upon.

ohiobearcat, stop listening to Foxnews for your own well being. You idiots keep clinging to what Hannity and other nutjobs say. No budget for 4 years! Every budget is an agreement, if you haven't figured it out already. Mitch and Boener were just trying to defeat Obama for the last 4 years. The American public said, enough with that on Nov 4th. The republican clowns still won't listen. You can't have any sort of agreement when one side refuses to move an inch.

Boehner is done on Jan 3rd. The tea party faction are going to put forth a motion for a secret ballot on the speakership instead of roll call vote. Boehner and is supporters can't object without showing incredible hypocrisy and embarrassment as they have blasted for decades non secret ballots for unions and other organizations. The secret ballot will free up the more establishment Repubs to oust Boehner b/c they have no fear of retribution if it fails b/c Boehner will not know who voted what way. They are already up in arms about chairmanship changes that they felt were retribution, secret ballot no retribution, blame or perceived as back stabber.

Since the GOP is the party by and for the rich any last-minute sell-out to the GOP is unnecessary. Go off the so-called cliff, let all the costly $1.6 trillion, 11-year, unpaid-for, non-jobs-creating Bush tax cuts expire along with all the other GOP-created tax breaks for the rich--the "carried interest" 15% rate, the reduced 15% dividend, capital gains taxes that allowed the super rich like Romney to amass wealth over decades, Alsdo include the alternative minimum tax, and the payroll tax. Only those collecting unemployment wil feel the immediate effects and the GOP hate extending unemployment benefits anyway though they are the most benficial to the economy as they are quickly spent in our 70% consumer-driven economy.

Democrats will be in a better negotiating position with fewer baggies in the House and with gains in both the House and the Senate.

You are a joke. Get real. Obama and Reid control two thirds of our government. They have no budget, no plan, no clue as to how to run a lemonade stand. A real leader would have a solution but losers blame others. So what's new with you loonies? Nothing, it's Bush's fault. LOL. You deserve to fall off the cliff.